Rajiv Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 See, I have to come to realize every tom, dick and harry out there likes to play "1 Billion Ppl" card. Oh you don't have fast bowlers 'jeez., one billion people', you don't have "best golf player", how come? you have 1 Billion people. Where is Superman? don't have one in India Do these idiots ( across several boards ) understand the demographics and what percentage of people play the sport or that bigger doesn't mean the best? everytime ..the questions are so appalling that its seems BCCI arranges a training camp for 1 Billion people and they pick and choose I would like to return the favor when everytime one ask this very question, so many engineers you have? how many doctors you have etc? I bet the answers will be 50,000, 100,000 ( but wait 90% of them will be Indians ) It's easy to say it but do you realize all of the Billion people in India don't play cricket Link to comment
Jimoi Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 We have many very good engineers in australia. We have a massive mining industry in western australia and a large proportion of iron ore that is used in manufacturing in china comes from the north west of australia. Link to comment
The Outsider Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 More than half of India's population would not be able to afford a cricket bat with a month's wage. Yeah, a billion people keep on playing cricket day in and out!! Link to comment
Jimoi Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 So 500 million get an opportunity? Link to comment
The Outsider Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 So 500 million get an opportunity? Sure, if with your monthly wage in which you have to support your wife, parents, and kids, you prefer to go to the nearest whorehouse you can afford to get a shag then yest 500 million get an opportunity. Link to comment
Jimoi Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 ouch But yeah i think the debate you're alluding to here is that india has a lot of people that cannot afford to play cricket or will ever get the opportunity to play cricket. Thats fair enough. I know about the social classes and certain struggles in india and im sympathetic to that. But far more people have opportunities to play cricket in india than australia has people. Its a fact India will be a powerhouse in cricket soon enough. The country has had 7% growth for the last 4-5 years, so they'll produce a world champion side soon Link to comment
Rajiv Posted January 30, 2008 Author Share Posted January 30, 2008 Jimoi, my point is having a large population doesn't mean everyone is playing cricket out there, 75% is India is all Village, the gully cricket you see is in big metros, out of which very few get to play in even school level It's really easy to argue with the the 1 billion option, frankly I don't think its even 10,000 ( my judgment ) and the crux of any sport is talent, you can find talent iamongst 10 people, where you can't find the same in 1 Million People It's all about timing too, 25 years ago the windies ruled cricket right, what happened now? similarly, India can be on top or whatever Pak, england etc in the future IMO,the bigger the pool, the harder it get to pick and frankly " who exactly " to pick, not to mention the politics and regionlism it's like lottery too, $2 ticket can win the jackpot but a $1000 one doesn't even get you a free game Link to comment
Jimoi Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 LOL you are delusional if you think england will ever be a cricketing powerhouse :P Link to comment
Rajiv Posted January 30, 2008 Author Share Posted January 30, 2008 LOL you are delusional if you think england will ever be a cricketing powerhouse :P Hmm, why not? its a different story that it will comprise of overseas players Link to comment
DomainK Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Jimoi, my point is having a large population doesn't mean everyone is playing cricket out there, 75% is India is all Village, the gully cricket you see is in big metros, out of which very few get to play in even school level It's really easy to argue with the the 1 billion option, frankly I don't think its even 10,000 ( my judgment ) and the crux of any sport is talent, you can find talent iamongst 10 people, where you can't find the same in 1 Million People It's all about timing too, 25 years ago the windies ruled cricket right, what happened now? similarly, India can be on top or whatever Pak, england etc in the future IMO,the bigger the pool, the harder it get to pick and frankly " who exactly " to pick, not to mention the politics and regionlism it's like lottery too, $2 ticket can win the jackpot but a $1000 one doesn't even get you a free game I have visited some of the most rural areas in Orissa and West Bangal and I have played cricket with the local boys. I have even played with many adivasis. Besides being mentally and physically strong and street smart, some of these boys posses extraordinary skill in batting and bowling. I have played cricket against budding cricketers in Bombay and hence I can compare. Batsmen: I have seen some batsmen with a very compact technique and solid stroke plays. Its unbelievable how they have learned these things without any professional coaching.....just following what they see on tv. If they can be given some professional coaching, I am sure we have many outstanding cricketers lost in the villages of rural India. Bowlers: They are rough and strong. Since they play with tennis balls, they cant really swing it, but their pace is too hot to handle. Absolute fierce bowling. They posses yorkers that even Akram would be proud of. These young boys end up in a paan shop on highway sides. Only if there was some exposure for them, we would have so many more great players. Link to comment
Rajiv Posted January 30, 2008 Author Share Posted January 30, 2008 Exposure: Key Word How do you get that in a big country like India, time perhaps Link to comment
DomainK Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Exposure: Key Word How do you get that in a big country like India, time perhaps Yes, time is one thing.....but the other most crucial thing is money. Whats BCCI doing with all that wealth? Whats the use of the wealth if its not being used for development of the game? Then, for all I know, some really great players get filtered at state levels because of some really dirty politics. What they showed in Iqbal is glimpse of what actually happens. If we dont correct our machinery, things wont improve at all. Link to comment
bunny Posted January 31, 2008 Share Posted January 31, 2008 I think the biggest difference is that the village, town and even city people play with tennis ball and that too not seriously (i.e., throw ball and all that stuff). Most never get a chance to play with a leather ball and even people who do get a chance for them the transition is massive and many youngsters are clearly afraid of being hurt. Obviously the lack of infrastructure means that even those who have some talent with the tennis ball are not spotted. (Compare this with how the gang/street culture of the poor African-Americans still produces great NBA players. For them the game remains the same. All they need is an opportunity to go to a decent high school). Link to comment
chanakya Posted January 31, 2008 Share Posted January 31, 2008 Yes, time is one thing.....but the other most crucial thing is money. Whats BCCI doing with all that wealth? Whats the use of the wealth if its not being used for development of the game? Then, for all I know, some really great players get filtered at state levels because of some really dirty politics. What they showed in Iqbal is glimpse of what actually happens. If we dont correct our machinery, things wont improve at all. we aren't talking about how the BCCI can do good right? Link to comment
talksport Posted January 31, 2008 Share Posted January 31, 2008 I am not very good, but can somebody put some numbers of probalibilty finding a one good fast bowler for each country....assume the whole population plays cricket.....It will be quite revealing Link to comment
Lurker Posted January 31, 2008 Share Posted January 31, 2008 ..the questions are so appalling that its seems BCCI arranges a training camp for 1 Billion people and they pick and choose As the adage goes - it is never the question that is wrong but the people who ask them. Yes I can see your viewpoint about Indian haters who use billion plus population as an excuse but surely you don't mean to suggest every single non-Indian has the same axe to grind? Lets get this straight - Pound for pound India is the worst sporting nation in the world. If we have to change that first we have to accept it and then address it. There is no point living in denial. Now onto some other remarks here - 75% live in village, half population can not afford cricket etc etc. I am not sure where did you get that 75% number really. That must have been true in Gandhi's time not today. Look around ICF how many posters(out of 3000 plus) have you seen utter anything about them hailing from village, I can count on one hand really. And if your rebuttal to that would be that ICF is made of NRIs or Indians living in cities then my response would be in that case ICF is very much removed from Indian reality then. But even if I do entertain the 75% living in village that should still make for 25% of billion plus population - a very healthy 250 million base. If you take away Bangladesh(which I am sure no Indian cricket fan wants to be compared with), our "effective" population is bigger than rest of cricketing world - Pakistan, Australia, England, NZ, South Africa, West Indies, Sri Lanka - put together! And surely our results dont reflect that. Again I am NOT defending Indian baiters who use population as a reason to get at India but surely we can all agree that as a sporting nation we SUCK! Lets agree to it and then address it. Who amongst us wouldnt want India to match China not only in economy but also in sports? xxx Link to comment
retterimp Posted January 31, 2008 Share Posted January 31, 2008 hmmm...the "i cannot afford cricket" excuse does not work in the case of bowling.... its definitely more expensive for someone who wants to become a batsman as he needs pads,gloves,box what-not. all a bowler needs is some round object to hurl as fast as he can...may even be a rock :D Link to comment
DravidDaBest Posted January 31, 2008 Share Posted January 31, 2008 hmmm...the "i cannot afford cricket" excuse does not work in the case of bowling.... its definitely more expensive for someone who wants to become a batsman as he needs pads,gloves,box what-not. all a bowler needs is some round object to hurl as fast as he can...may even be a rock :D Even if you're able to buy a cricket bal, what would you care...next meal or becoming a professional cricketer? Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now